KR20030094241A - System and method for dynamic web page generation - Google Patents

Abstract

A method of dynamically constructing a web page is disclosed that includes receiving a URL that identifies the web page. The web page references a plurality of elements. The method also includes receiving a user identifier indicating a user and evaluating each referenced element based on the user identifier to identify a subset of at least one element that the user is authorized to access. The method further includes determining a data conversion specification associated with the user and determining a data presentation specification associated with the user. The subset of elements that the user is authorized to access is translated and represented for the user. Also disclosed are systems and computer readable storage media for defining and presenting composite web pages.

Description

System and method for dynamically generating web pages {SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR DYNAMIC WEB PAGE GENERATION}

[Related Application]

This application claims priority from US Provisional Application No. 60 / 265,224, "System and Method For Isomorphic Data-Driven Web Page Generation," filed Jan. 31, 2001, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Also incorporated herein by reference is US Patent Application "System and Method For Defining and Presenting a Composite Web Page," which is also filed at the same time.

Publishing information on a network such as the Internet, for example, generally involves converting this information into a computer readable format. Scripts that conform to certain standards such as HTML, JavaScript, and Java are often used because these scripts can be rendered and viewed using conventional web browsers. . The process of generating such scripts has evolved substantially since the creation of the Internet. For example, commercial software tools are available that relatively easily convert information stored in a database into such scripts. Such a tool is suitable for purposes such as a corporate web portal because the computing environment for this trend is relatively stable.

But new business models such as Application Service Providers (ASPs) have different requirements. ASPs serve the computing needs of other businesses and operate the necessary hardware and software on behalf of their customers. To meet the needs of a dynamically changing customer base, ASPs need to support other businesses so that they can access a wide range of hardware and software over the Internet. Because each software application that ASP uses can have its own unique web-based interface, you need to find a way for ASP to integrate all these heterogeneous web interfaces in a dynamic and cost-effective way.

Web pages are generated using one of several conventional methods. Web pages can be coded manually using the associated scripts. In general, however, manually generating a web page is suitable when the simplest form of the web page is developed.

The second way of generating web pages is to use available applications developed specifically to generate web pages from specific data sources in a systematic way. Such programs include, for example, CGI programs, Java servlets, active server pages, and Java server pages. Such available programs include embedded information about web page presentation and navigation structures. This is suitable as a mechanism for publishing information from large amounts of data in a systematic way. However, because many page definitions are included in the logic of the program, it is difficult to update and maintain web pages created in this way.

A third way of generating web pages involves using specialized generation programs designed to publish information in a flexible manner from certain types of data, such as SQL databases. Such programs can provide flexibility in how information is disclosed and what information is disclosed, but there are limitations to the type of data source supported.

A fourth way of creating a web page involves using a specialized creation program designed to collect information from various sources and present the information to the user in a unified manner. Typically, companies use these programs to disclose information to employees or customers. While such systems are suitable for use in relatively stable enterprise environments, they are insufficient for dynamic environments such as emerging service provider markets. In general, such programs do not support much or no significant number of features that service providers use, such as fine-grained access control for individual web pages and branding support of the pages.

Thus, the conventional method of generating web pages has disadvantages for use in generating web pages of the service provider market.

The present application relates to the field of generating and presenting information on a network, and more particularly, to a system and method for dynamically collecting and presenting web page content.

For a more complete understanding of the systems and methods disclosed in accordance with the present application, reference is made to the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals indicate similar features.

1A is a block diagram of an exemplary service provider system in accordance with the present application.

1B is a block diagram of an exemplary service provider system in accordance with the present application.

2 illustrates an exemplary method of dynamically generating a web page in accordance with an embodiment of the present application.

3A-3C illustrate in more detail an exemplary method for dynamically generating web pages in accordance with one embodiment of the present application.

4 is a block diagram illustrating a system for dynamically generating web pages in accordance with one embodiment of the present application.

5A is a computer screen display showing a first branded web page in accordance with one embodiment of the disclosed systems and methods.

5B is a computer screen display showing a second branded web page in accordance with one embodiment of the disclosed systems and methods.

The present application provides a method and system for dynamically generating web pages in a computer processing environment. According to one aspect of the present application, a method of dynamically constructing a web page is disclosed. The method includes receiving a URL that identifies a web page. The web page references a plurality of elements. The method also includes receiving a user identifier indicating a user and evaluating each of the plurality of elements based on the user identifier to identify a subset of at least one element the user is authorized to access. do. The method further includes determining a data conversion specification associated with the user and determining a data representation specification associated with the user. The method further includes transforming and presenting each of the subset of elements representing the dynamically generated web page.

Also disclosed is a system for dynamically constructing web pages. The system includes a processor and a memory that stores processor executable instructions for controlling the operation of the processor. The processor executable instructions include instructions for receiving a URL that identifies a web page. The web page references one or more elements. The system also includes instructions to receive a user identifier indicative of a user and to evaluate each of a plurality of elements based on the user identifier to identify a subset of at least one element the user is authorized to access. do. The system further includes instructions for determining a data conversion specification associated with the user and instructions for determining a data presentation specification associated with the user. The system further includes instructions for transforming and representing each of the subset of elements.

Also disclosed is an apparatus for dynamically constructing a web page. The apparatus includes means for receiving a URL that identifies a web page. The web page references at least one element. The apparatus also includes means for receiving a user identifier representing a user and means for evaluating each of the referenced elements based on the user identifier to identify a subset of at least one element the user is authorized to access. do. The apparatus further includes means for determining a data conversion specification associated with the user and means for determining a data presentation specification associated with the user. The apparatus further includes means for transforming and presenting each of the subset of elements representing the dynamically generated web page.

Also disclosed is a computer readable storage medium including processing instructions for implementing a particular disclosed method.

The disclosed systems and methods allow one or more users to simultaneously access a web page associated with a URL, with each user receiving only the information he or she is authorized to access. The objects, features and advantages of the disclosed method and system are apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The method and system according to the present application generates a web page based on the stored page definition. Such page definitions may be stored locally in a page registry 160, for example as shown in FIG. 1A, or may be distributed storage media, eg, page registry 160, as shown in FIG. 1B. ) Can be stored. Page definitions are information about the relationship between web pages, how data from heterogeneous sources are fetched and translated into a uniform language suitable for displaying information (e.g., XML representation), Style sheet information that coordinates foreign data, style sheet information that constitutes a visual display of a web page, and access to each page that allows different users to view different parts of the same set of web pages. It may include control information.

In the example in which many features of the web page and the relationship between different web pages are clearly shown in the present system, this indication may be considered in the form of an identically shaped representation of the actual web page. In addition to the navigation structure between pages, a mapping mechanism is provided that allows individual web pages to be dynamically generated, for example, from the page registry 160.

The method and system according to the present application simplifies the process of publishing a web page over a network such as the Internet. Using the methods and systems disclosed herein, web pages from various sources can be easily and efficiently integrated into a consistent user interface. In addition, according to the present method and system, access control may be located on such a web page such that users with different roles may have different access levels. The methods and systems disclosed herein support "concurrent branding" of generated web pages so that each service provider (eg, ASP or MAP) customer has a unique look-and-feel and-feel).

1A is a block diagram of an example service provider system 100 that can dynamically generate a web page. 1B illustrates another embodiment of a service provider system capable of dynamically generating web pages. As shown, the service provider system includes a system 400 that dynamically constructs web pages connected to various heterogeneous sources, such as applications 112, data sources 114, 116, and 118, and page registry 160. .

Application Integration Bus

The system 400 for dynamically constructing web pages stores and stores information in one or more various heterogeneous sources, such as applications 112, data sources 114, 116, and 118, and / or page registry 160. And an application integration bus 110 capable of extracting information. The application integration bus 110 is an infrastructure that facilitates communication between different computer programs in a consistent and trusted manner. An example of a suitable application integration bus is a CA Common Service application produced by "Computer Associates International Inc." in Islandia, New York, and formerly known as Jasmine _ii . 1A shows an application 112, data source 114, 116 and a local connection via POTS, wireless telephone networks, Local Area Networks and Wide Area Networks, and the like. 118 and application integration bus 110 coupled to page registry 160. FIG. 1B shows an application integration bus 110 connected to an application 112, data sources 114, 116 and 118 and page registry 160 via the Internet.

Application integration bus 110 delivers data from one or more heterogeneous sources to data format translator 120.

Data format converter

The data format converter 120 may be configured to display data in a format that is not suitable for displaying information, for example, in a proprietary binary format (eg, text document, spreadsheet, database information). And XML syntax (or data) capable of displaying information such as web information. More specifically, data format converter 120 searches for a data structure, for example in binary form, and converts the data structure into a format suitable for display, which may be XML syntax (or data). The data format converter 120 uses the data received from the application integration bus 110 to process the request and pass the data (eg, XML data) to the GUI data manager 130.

GUI data manager

In general, GUI data manager 130 handles requests for data coming into system 400. GUI data manager 130 generates a web page to process the data content, presentation specification, user preferences and user access rights and return to the requesting web browser. The data content processed by the GUI data manager 130 includes content displayed in a web page, where the extracted data can be converted to XML data using, for example, a common XML wrapper. Resident application integration bus 110, sources reachable from other applications, such as the "Apache Cocoon" framework described below, web-based GUIs from third party products, URLs reachable over the Internet, and / or a GUI definition registry. (Or the page registry 160) may come from various sources.

The representation specification used by the GUI data manager 130 is generally defined as an XSL file. User preferences can be stored in a service provider registry (eg, an ASP registry) and used to influence the presentation of data for a user. In addition, the user's access rights may be stored in the service provider registry. User access rights define what data or class of data a user is authorized to access.

In particular, the GUI data manager 130 converts the data from the data format converter 120 into a format suitable for presentation to the user, for example HTML or PDF format. For example, if the output of the data format converter 120 is XML data, the GUI data manager 130 may convert the XML data into HTML data. In addition to interfacing with the data formatter 120, the GUI data manager 130 accesses, updates, and maintains web pages stored in the page registry 160 via the application integration bus 110. The GUI data manager 130 also responds to the request received from the web server 140.

The web server provides a URL to the GUI data manager 130, which responds by sending HTML code to the web server. In general, the web server 140 provides a web page to the user 170 via the Internet 150.

Generation of an HTML page by the GUI data manager 130 relies on, for example, data stored in the GUI definition registry or page registry 160. Separation of data from presentation specifications provides several advantages. In particular, the responsibility for generating content may be distributed among various sources. In addition, the representation defined by the XSL file allows the visualization of the information to be defined separately. Thus, the disclosed GUI framework simplifies the process of publishing and managing multiple application GUIs with little limitation on the type of web pages that can be generated from such a system.

According to one embodiment, the GUI data manager 130 employs an architecture that employs a collection of applications with at least one application that can publish content over the Internet. An example of such an application is the "Apache Cocoon" framework developed by the "Apache Software Foundation" which provides open source software. More information about the "Apache Software Foundation" can be found at http://www.apache.org. Other functionally similar applications are also considered. Using the "Apache Cocoon" application, the "Apache Cocoon" application converts the XML data from the data format converter 120 into HTML. In general, GUI data manager 130 combines the XML data with a particular XSL file to create an HTML file, which may then be transmitted over the Internet 150 by web server 140 and to the user's computer. It may be displayed to the user 170 through an installed web browser (not shown).

Apache Cocoon also enables the use of custom plug-in modules that extract specific data from various sources into an XML data format. Multiple modules may be used to extract data from a source, such as a source connected to the application integration bus 110 or directly connected to, for example, an SQL database.

Using the architecture of FIG. 1, the creation of a new web page in accordance with the present application comprises the steps of creating a new object in a GUI definition registry, the object including information used to generate the web page, data source and page Editing the properties of the object to include the correct reference to the relevant information needed to create the web page, including the layout, ensuring that the associated data source exists to provide the data, and Ensuring that a file (eg, an XSL file) is defined for the page. Preferably, the file contains information regarding the presentation of a particular web page. The file can come from any library and can be reused in multiple pages if necessary to provide look-and-fill consistency.

GUI Definition / Page Registry

GUI definition registry or page registry 160 is a feature of the disclosed system that allows definitions of web pages to be data-driven and centrally managed. In one embodiment, an application integration framework that includes an X.500 directory may be used for various purposes, such as accounting management, user profile management, and storage of application specific settings. The same X.500 directory can also be used to store the GUI definition registry.

Pages are defined as GUI nodes in the GUI definition registry. The GUI node may be an instance of the base GUI NODE class or one of its subclasses. The base GUI NODE class contains the following attributes:

NAME: A unique string property used to identify this node.

LABEL: String attribute that is normally displayed on a web page. For localization, this string needs to be replaced.

TITLE: A string property usually used in the HTML "title" tag of a web page, if applicable. This string needs to be replaced for localization.

KEYWORDS: string containing a list of keywords. These keywords can optionally be used as part of an HTML page, which facilitates the use of the search engine of the web page.

ACCESS RIGHTS: A string that defines the groups of users who have access to this GUI. A user's access rights are defined by security groups. Each security group is assigned access to a specific GUI in this system. Users belonging to the security group are granted access to the same GUI as the security group. The range of access granted by the security group can be reconfigured at any time by the system administrator.

CONTENT: A string that defines one of the following:

A URL pointing to the source of the XML data associated with this node.

A URL pointing to the source that generates the HTML directly. This is useful for integrating third party web-based GUIs into this system.

A reference to an object in the ASP registry.

XML file on the local machine.

Information needed to access the data provider on the Jasmine II data bus. In general, data is extracted using method calls or queries. Note that the XML wrapper is used in this process to convert Jasmine ii objects / collections to XML format.

A string representation that references a specific object of the Jasmine II provider.

CONTENT TYPE: An integer property that indicates the type of content:

1-The content is XML.

2-The content is HTML.

3-The content is a reference to an object in the ASP registry.

4-The content is stored in an XML file.

5-The content comes from a method call to the Jasmine ii provider.

6-Content comes from a query for Jasmine ii provider.

7-The content contains a static reference to a specific object of the Jasmine ii provider.

XSL_PRESENTATION: A string property, if applicable, that is a URL pointing to an XSL file specifying the visual representation of this node. Note that this property is not used when the content source generates HTML.

A string that is a URL that points to an XSL file for converting the KML data specified in the XSL_TRANSFORMATION: CONTENT property to another form (if applicable). This is useful for bringing heterogeneous XML data sources into the system.

A string property used in the same way as XSL_TRANSFORMATION_WML: XSL_TRANSFORMATION. The XSL file specified here is useful for converting source XML data into WML, which is, for example, small form factor hands such as pagers, cellular phones, and palm-top computers. It is suitable for display on small form-factor handheld devices.

DISPLAY_IN_TREE: A Boolean property that indicates whether this node should be displayed in the tree GUI. This property allows the runtime choice whether to display the abstract GUI structure as a tree GUI or as a continuous GUI connected to each other by cross references.

ACCESS DEPTH: Integer property indicating how deep the tree should be extracted node information from. A depth of zero indicates that only the current node needs to be extracted. A depth of 1 indicates that both the current node and its child nodes should be extracted. A value of -1 indicates that all sub-trees should be fetched, regardless of how deep the tree is. The default value is 1.

IS-SECURED: Boolean attribute indicating whether this page is intended to be sent over a secure channel such as HTTPS. The default value is false.

ICON_1: String property containing a URL pointing to the icon used for this node.

ICON_2: String property containing a URL pointing to another icon used for this node.

Integer property indicating whether ICON USED: ICON_1 or ICON_2 is used for this node. A value of zero indicates that no icon is used. With other icons, you can display GUI nodes as nodes in the tree GUI or IMAGE tags on an HTML page, or you can display GUI nodes as Windows-style moveable 32-bye-32 icons or any size in a common web style. Displaying as an image can be enabled.

TRANSITION EFFECT ENTER: An integer property that indicates whether a visual transitional effect is applied when entering the web page displaying the content of this node. This only applies to Internet Explorer V4.0 or later and has no effect on the Netscape Navigator browser. The default value is -1, indicating that no effect is to be used.

TRANSITION-EFFECT-EXIT: An integer property similar to the previous one. This is used to indicate whether the effect of exiting a web page is used.

IS VISIBLE: Boolean property indicating whether this node is visible or not. The default value is true.

The GUI root node of the GUI definition registry is used to display containers for other GUIs. By placing a GUI definition registry in the application registry it can be easily accessed through a common data bus.

The CONTENT attribute of the GUI node of registry 160 indicates a template implemented with information from the requesting URL. For example, a GUI node "SHOW-PAYMENTS" may be created to display a page displaying past payment information. In order to use such a GUI node for a particular resident X for last year's payment, some of the information contained in the CONTENT property is replaced to reflect that the resident X is of interest and that the period is one year. For example, if the CONTENT attribute contains the string "Args = $ USERID $", it indicates that upon activation, the ID of the user currently accessing should be used to replace "$ USERID $".

Methodology Overview

Referring to FIG. 2, a flow diagram illustrating the operation of one methodology for dynamically generating web pages is shown. This methodology will be described as converting data structures into XML syntax and XML syntax into HTML in order to present the web page dynamically to the user. Using the processing environment shown in FIG. 1A, a data presentation scheme is used to display each individual web page published by the system. Such representation of a web page, called a GUI node, for example, where and how need data is accessed, how abstract data is changed into a visual representation, how such a web page is related to other pages, and who has access to this page. An example of one of the features of a web page includes whether it can.

As shown in block 205, this GUI node information is generated by the web page designer and stored in the page registry 160 at design time. In one embodiment, page registry 160 is implemented on top of an LDAP directory or database because of their ability to store large amounts of data and allow fast access.

In block " 210 ", the source of data needed in the web page is defined as part of the associated GUI node. This includes information such as the name of the data source, the name of the method, and the arguments required. During the generation of the web page, such data may be fetched using the application integration bus 110.

At run time, the request for this system is received in the form of a URL, as shown in block 215, and is generally initiated by a user from a web browser. The overall task of the system is to create the next web page in a predetermined form and content. This is done using the GUI data manager 130.

GUI data manager 130 determines the credentials of the user (block “220”). GUI data manager 130 further decodes the URL to extract GUI node information from page registry 160 for the requested web page for which the user is authorized to access (block “225”).

In step 230, the data format converter extracts an XSL file for a given GUI node. The GUI data manager uses the output of the XSL file to generate a script, such as an HTML file (block "235"). The web server 140 delivers a script to be executed by a web browser to present a dynamically generated web page.

3A-3C, a more detailed example methodology for dynamically generating a web page at run time is shown in accordance with one embodiment of the disclosed method. At run time, the web page designer created and stored the data schema and instances defined in the GUI definition registry 160. 3A-3C illustrate how the various components of the system work together to generate a web page from such information.

At block 305, a request to display one or more web pages is received as a URL via web server 140 and processed by GUI data manager 130. In block " 310 ", the GUI data manager 130 parses the URL into GUI node information, which information is referred to the GUI page registry 160 by reference to the node and, if necessary, a reference to the data source. Include.

GUI data manager 160 may include the associated GUI node, the source of data that may be in an XML format indicated by the node's CONTENT property, and, if applicable, an XSL file as indicated by the node's XSL property, such as a service provider registry Access control data of a user from the user, a user preference profile from the service provider registry, and the like. Note that some settings in the profile can be used to override the information in the GUI definition registry, and it is also possible that part of the URL specifies the complete information needed for extraction without using the information from the GUI node. .

GUI data manager 130 fetches GUI node G (block "315") referenced by the URL and all child GUI nodes for the specified depth, included in G (block "320"). If G is realized as a web page, these included GUI nodes are turned into hyperlinks in the page.

In blocks 325 through 345, access control information of all GUI nodes associated with the requested URL is compared with the credentials of the user who initiated the request. GUI nodes that the user is allowed to access are returned to the set GS and collected.

At block 325, information is extracted about data sources of GUI nodes that the user is authorized to access. The received data is then converted into XML format. Two different directories DS1 and DS2 may be designated for a particular user U (block “360”). Of course, for users without specific data requirements, a default directory can be used.

The two Extensible Stylesheet Language (XSL) files FS1 and FS2 specified in G are identified in blocks "370" and "384", respectively. FS1 is extracted from blocks "370" through "380" and FS2 is extracted from blocks "386" through "390". XSL is a standard Internet scripting language for transforming one form of XML into another. In block "382", the XSL file FS1 is applied to the XML data to affect the conversion from XML data to other forms. This step may be necessary in some cases, because such XML data comes from a foreign source using a different set of XML tags, and this process converts them into a format acceptable to this system.

In block "392", the XSL file FS2 is applied to the results from block "382" and generally generates a script that includes HTML, JavaScript, and Java code. The script then returns to the orginating web browser where the results are displayed as a web page. At block "394", the script describing the requested page is returned to user U's web browser for presentation.

In order to allow different users to use different XSL files while using the same GUI node, a set of environment variables is extracted for the user accessing this system. Such variables are stored in page registry 160, and each user can have his own set of variables. Such a variable specifies another directory where your XSL files reside. If the required XSL file does not exist in another directory, the default XSL file is used.

It should be noted that using the above environment variables enables branding and integration of foreign data sources. Environment variables allow all users to share the same set of GUI nodes, but provide each user with their own private version of the FS2 file, providing each user with a separate look It is useful because it makes it possible to have end-fills.

Similarly, allowing users to specify their own XSL file FS1 allows XML data to be transformed in a way that is specific to the data source. This makes it possible to apply the necessary transformations to the foreign data source in order to change the foreign data source into an acceptable form in this system.

An embodiment of a system 400 for dynamically generating a web page is shown in FIG. As shown, the system includes a processor 410 and a memory 415. Memory 415 is coupled to processor 410 and stores processor executable instructions for dynamically generating web pages.

The memory 415 includes dynamic web page generation logic 420 to dynamically generate and present the requested web page. Dynamic web page generation logic 420 utilizes a URL receiving module 425 to receive a URL representing the requested web page. Generating logic 420 also includes a user identification receiving module 430 and an element identification and evaluation module to identify the user and to identify the element referenced by the requested web page that the user is authorized to access, respectively. (element identification and evaluation module) 435.

The data conversion module 440 is used by the dynamic web page generation logic 420 to convert the data referenced by the requested web page from various protocols to standard protocols. Generation logic 420 provides data in a standard format to web page presentation module 445. In one embodiment, web page presentation module 445 is a standard Internet web browser.

In another embodiment, the system shown in FIG. 4 may be embodied as computer readable code stored on a computer readable medium. The code may include one or more computer / processor executable instructions that cause the computer to execute in the selected manner. The computer readable medium may be an optical storage device such as a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM, a magnetic storage device such as a hard disk or floppy disk, an electronic storage device such as a memory card, a RAM, a ROM, an EPROM, an EEPROM, a flash memory, or a computer readout. It can be any other storage device capable of storing possible processor instructions.

Although the disclosed systems and methods have been described in particular embodiments and applications, those skilled in the art can create additional embodiments, including various changes, substitutions, and modifications, without departing from the spirit or scope of the present disclosure. Accordingly, it should be noted that the figures and description herein are intended to facilitate understanding of the present system and method, but not to limit the scope of the present invention.

5A shows a computer screen display showing a branded web page representation for a first user. In FIG. 5B there is a corresponding web page representation branded for the second user. Both users requested the same URL of the web server 140, but received different displays depending on the identity of each user.

Claims (16)

In the method of dynamically constructing a web page, Receiving a URL identifying a web page referencing a plurality of elements; Receiving a user identifier indicating a user; Evaluating each of the plurality of elements based on the user identifier to identify a subset of at least one element the user is authorized to access; Determining a data conversion specification associated with the user; Determining a data presentation specification associated with the user; And Transforming and representing each of the subset of elements Method comprising a. 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining a role based on the user identifier, wherein evaluating each of the plurality of elements is performed based on the role of the user. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining an affiliation based on the user identifier, wherein evaluating each of the plurality of elements is performed based on an affiliation of the user. How to. 4. The method of claim 3, wherein the data representation specification includes branding data expressed based on the affiliation of the user. 2. The method of claim 1 further comprising defining an environment variable and enabling concurrent access between users to the data conversion specification and the data presentation specification. In a system for dynamically constructing web pages, A processor; A memory coupled to the processor for storing processor executable instructions for controlling the operation of the processor; The processor executable instructions include Instructions for receiving a URL identifying a web page that references a plurality of elements; Instructions for receiving a user identifier representing a user; Evaluating each of the plurality of elements based on the user identifier to identify a subset of at least one element that the user is authorized to access; Determining a data conversion specification associated with the user; Instructions for determining a data presentation specification associated with the user; And Instructions for transforming and representing each of the subset of elements System comprising a. 7. The system of claim 6, further comprising instructions for determining a role based on the user identifier, wherein the instructions for evaluating each of the plurality of elements includes instructions for evaluating a role of the user. 7. The method of claim 6, further comprising instructions for determining an affiliation based on the user identifier, wherein the instructions for evaluating each of the plurality of elements includes instructions for evaluating an affiliation of the user. system. The system of claim 8, further comprising instructions for expressing branding data expressed based on the affiliation of the user. 7. The system of claim 6, further comprising instructions defining environment variables and enabling concurrent access between users to the data change specification and the data presentation specification. In a device for dynamically constructing a web page, Means for receiving a URL identifying a web page that references a plurality of elements; Means for receiving a user identifier representing a user; Means for evaluating each of the plurality of elements based on the user identifier to identify a subset of at least one element the user is authorized to access; Means for determining a data conversion specification associated with the user; Means for determining a data presentation specification associated with the user; And Means for transforming and representing each of the subset of elements Apparatus comprising a. 12. The apparatus of claim 11, further comprising means for determining a role based on the user identifier, wherein the means for evaluating operates based on the role of the user. 12. The apparatus of claim 11, further comprising means for determining an affiliation based on the user identifier, the means for evaluating based on the affiliation of the user. 14. The apparatus of claim 13, further comprising means for presenting branding data based on the affiliation of the user. 12. The apparatus of claim 11, further comprising means for enabling simultaneous access between users of the data change specification and the data presentation specification. A computer readable storage medium encoded with processing instructions for dynamically generating a web page, the method comprising: Computer readable instructions for receiving a URL identifying a web page that references a plurality of elements; Computer readable instructions for receiving a user identifier representing a user; Computer readable instructions for evaluating each of the plurality of elements based on the user identifier to identify a subset of at least one element the user is authorized to access; Computer readable instructions for determining a data conversion specification associated with the user; Computer readable instructions for determining a data presentation specification associated with the user; And Computer readable instructions for transforming and representing each of the subset of elements And a computer readable storage medium.